The present invention generally relates to a kitchen appliance system, and more particularly to a modular appliance system that allows users to conduct a variety of kitchen tasks, such as food processing, coffee grinding, blending, mixing, juicing and/or pot scrubbing.
At the present time, kitchens are generally well-equipped with modern appliances to improve the quality and efficiency of household work. Many modern day kitchen appliances have been developed to serve a variety of purposes. However, regardless of the size of the kitchen, the available countertop space that can accommodate a desired selection of kitchen appliances is always limited. Moreover, in most cases, the area suitable for food preparation is generally insufficient for even the simplest meals without relocating small appliances or clearing off additional space during intermediate stages of the cooking process. Thus, substantial benefits can be derived from compact kitchen appliances and whenever two or more conventional kitchen appliances, devices, tools, or aids are integrated to occupy a similar space.
Several appliances have been developed which attempt to minimize kitchen countertop space or to combine several kitchen tools in one appliance. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,947,909 to Kuo discloses a kitchen utility tool driven by a remote motor via a flexible drive shaft. The motor is mounted on a two-way swivel adjacent a kitchen workspace, such as a sink, for transmitting power from the motor to the rotary-driven kitchen implement, such as a sink brush or mixer blades. The device is collapsible and can be swiveled out of the way in a rest position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,255 to Kafka discloses a modular kitchen appliance arrangement including a portable hand held unit which can be fitted with a selection of kitchen utensils, such as a whisk, a spatula and a mixer. The hand held unit is powered by batteries contained within the unit and which can be recharged by fitting the unit into a base when not in use. The base further includes receptacles for holding the various rotary driven kitchen utensils.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,535 to Terry discloses a kitchen appliance with a flexible drive shaft for driving one of a plurality of kitchen attachments. The flexible drive shaft delivers power from a remote motor and gear assembly to a portable hand held unit having the kitchen attachment. The motor and gear assembly is designed to be switchable between a rotary mode and an oscillating mode. The motor and gear assembly further includes a switch which can be remotely closed by activating a lever on the portable hand held unit.
Each of the above appliances relates solely to hand held appliances and are thus limited in their applications. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a compact kitchen appliance that is fully modular and adaptable to be used for a greater variety of purposes. In this regard, it would further be desirable to provide a modular kitchen appliance including both a base for stationary kitchen accessories, as well as a portable hand held unit connected to the base by a flexible drive for driving a plurality of attachments such that the appliance can be used for a greater plurality of tasks.
The present invention is a modular kitchen appliance system including a base having a first receptacle and a second receptacle formed in a top surface of the base, at least a first motor contained within the base, a vessel supported in the first receptacle of the base and a hand-held appliance removably supported in the second receptacle of the base. The vessel includes a blade assembly adapted for coupling to the first motor and the hand-held appliance has a first end for receiving a shaft of an appliance attachment.
In a preferred embodiment, the appliance system further includes a flexible drive cable defining a first end, a second end and a longitudinal axis. The second end of the cable is received by a second end of the hand-held appliance and is securable to the shaft of the appliance attachment for imparting a rotary motion to the appliance attachment. The first end of the flexible cable may be coupled to the first motor or it may be coupled to a second motor contained within the base. Either motor pivots the flexible drive cable with respect to its longitudinal axis thereby imparting the rotary motion to the appliance attachment.
The base further preferably includes a third receptacle formed in the top surface thereof for supporting the appliance attachment and an interior storage compartment for storing the flexible drive cable in a coiled retracted position. The storage compartment is preferably provided with a cable retraction mechanism, activated by a cable retraction button, for alternately feeding and retracting the flexible drive cable to desired lengths outside of the base. Additionally, the interior storage compartment preferably defines an opening in the base through which the flexible drive cable may be withdrawn and retracted. A wiper bushing is provided at the opening of the base for cleaning debris from the flexible drive cable during retraction of the cable into the interior storage compartment.
In an alternative preferred embodiment, the hand-held appliance includes a drive assembly contained therein for imparting the rotary motion to the appliance attachment. The hand-held appliance also includes a power source for powering the drive. The power source may include a battery that can be recharged by a battery charging circuit contained within the base when the appliance is supported in the second receptacle of the base.
A preferred form of the modular kitchen appliance system, as well as other embodiments, objects, features and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof, which is to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.